Dancing on Ice star Nile Wilson has revealed he received thousands of messages of support after speaking about his struggles with addictions and mental health.
The Olympic gymnast has reached the final of the ITV contest, alongside professional partner Olivia Smart. He was tipped to do well in the competition from the start of the series.
The 27-year-old told how he turned to drinking and gambling when he was forced to give up his sport through injury in 2019, reports The Mirror. But he has turned his life around and insists others can do the same.
Read More: Dancing on Ice's Nile Wilson hit by 'overmarked' accusations from skating expert ahead of final
Taking part in Dancing on Ice has also helped him mentally and he says it is good to speak up if you are suffering. Nile said: "I've had thousands of messages which is special.
"Messages saying how incredible it is and how it’s touched people and made them think differently, made them sort of realise that maybe they weren’t quite right, without them knowing."
He further said that above any of the things he had achieved, including winning medals, this was "one of the proudest things I’ve done".
Nile Wilson, Joey Essex and The Vivienne have secured a place in Sunday's grand final. During last weekend's show, Nile and Olivia made history scoring the first 10 of the series before gaining a perfect score.
He skated to In My Blood by Shawn Mendes, which he chose because the lyrics conveyed his mental health journey after retirement from gymnastics. In the video before his performance, Nile spoke about his feelings of "complete loneliness" after retiring from the sport and turning to drinking, gambling and painkillers - describing himself as being in a "scary place".
After topping the leaderboard, Nile said: "The story I told took a lot of courage to do that and this process has given me some life and some light." Judge Christopher Dean said: "What I loved was the raw emotion. I think you surprised yourself with what you can bring out of yourself. I hope Dancing On Ice has filled that void because that Olympic flame always burns bright."
Oti Mabuse said: "I want to thank you for being on the show, for speaking out about mental health and letting us see you for who you really are, because that was perfection."
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